Cat suddenly refused to eat wet food

Szewan

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When I adopted my 6 yo cat last fall I knew he had a history of dry food only feeding. Since I adopted him, I tried to get him started on wet food since he’s overweight and wet food is better for weight management. After months of trying diff brands, flavors and textures, and many many arounds of throwing away food and returning food for refunds, I finally found one brand/flavor type that he likes - Weruva BFF Oh My Gravy tuna-based flavors. I started rotating him between tuna/salmon and tuna/chicken, and he seems fine. I got him on calorie-counting dieting based on vet recommendation, and for the last few months, I managed to have 2/3 of his daily calories from wet food and 1/3 of from some weight management low calories dry food. Starting a few days ago, out of the blue, he refused to eat his familiar wet food, but he had no problems gobbling up his kibbles.

I probably need to on the hunt for another wet food, while in the meantime I have to resort to just feeding him his kibbles. It’d be hard to search again cos I think I tried all the major brands (except the lower quality ones) of wet food experimenting with flavors and textures, and he had no interest in any of them...

I am more worried if he has developed some medical conditions overnight that makes him suddenly lost interest in his wet food, but has no problems inhaling his dry kibbles. His stool snd activity level seems normal though.

appreciate anyone out there who have had similar experience to share your insights.
 

FeebysOwner

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Hi. Would he be willing to eat the dry if it were moistened a bit with water? You could start out slow and increase the water over time, depending on how he reacts to it.

You could also consider trying Fancy Feast - it seems to be a big 'go to' for many cats.
 

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If you go with the Fancy Feast, try to stick with the pates. they are the lowest in carbs, which is what you want so he'll feel more full. Plus that's just better for any cat to have fewer carbs. Over Friskies pates are ok, carb wise.

It's probably NOT a health issue since he's still gobbling down the kibble. He simply knows what he likes. You could also try grinding up some of that beloved kibble and sprinkle it on top of the wet food, or mix some of the kibble into the wet food, but don't forget to count the calories in those bits
 
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Szewan

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I tried sprinkling the kibbles on top of the wet food but no he wouldn’t eat it. It’s just strange that he seemed to like it but literally overnight he decided he actually didn’t like it anymore 😂 I read from some other threads that some cats 🐱 do get bored with the same food over time - maybe that’s why.

I haven’t tried Fancy Feast on him. I read from their labels and they always have something that make me hesitate such as animal by products or wheat gluten.
 

mrsgreenjeens

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How about Sheba pate? It's very similar to Fancy Feast, but slightly better ingredients. Or maybe he doesn't like pate? Some cats definitely like variety. I have two cats and one has been eating the same exact wet food for years now, and the other likes something different at each meal, so he's on a rotation. The eat three meals per day and the one on rotation never even gets the same protein twice in the same day, let alone the same type of food. (pate, chunks, slices, etc). Cats are like kids, definitely have their likes and dislikes AND can love something one day and hate it the next. But I have also found that the variety eaters may hate it one day, then in a couple days they like it again
 
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Szewan

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Yeah he basically likes a lot of gravy. Pate is typically 78% moisture. He wasn’t interested in any - and I tried multiple brands and flavors before. He likes Weruva BFF Oh My Gravy (OMG) because it typically has 84-85% moisture, and I noticed there aren’t many alternatives out there. I tried adding water and broth to other wet food before, but he decided he didn’t me tampering his food 😂. There are other tuna based flavors in Weruva BFF OMG so i will give them a try. Like you said cats are unpredictable. Maybe after a while I tried the old flavors and he starts eating again. I noticed Petco’s own brand Wholehearted has some gravy rich wet food that has very decent ingredients, so I may want to give it a try too.
 

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You might also try Soulistic, petco's other house brand. They are made by the same folks who make Weruva. That's the brand we used when we transitioned four cats from kibble to wet food.
 
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Szewan

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Ahhh thanks for letting me know. I just bought a variety pack online to try out. Their flavors by their names are almost the same as Weruva BFF, but there might be some subtle differences since they’re after all different brands? Will see.

Btw Pancake was in the mood tonight to eat his Weruva tuna/salmon. 🥳lets see how sustainable this is. any case I think I want test him on other flavors/brands so hopefully more variety would minimize the chance him not eating his wet food going forward.

thanks for the tips again!!
 

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It might also be a temporary, mild digestive problem. They swallow more air when they eat wet food so they might get gassy. I believe wet food also takes more space in their stomach - my Hima eats about 40 grams of wet food at one sitting at most, or less, she never east 40 grams of dry food at once. Hima also doesn't want to eat wet food much if she has a dental issue.
 
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Szewan

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Oh yes that reminds me - dental is the next thing I want to look into. Recently I noticed Pancake having a fishy smell from his mouth when trying to wake me up in the morning on my bed 😳 Pancake wouldn’t allow me to brush his teeth. I bought this online today actually to try: VetriScience Perio Support Everyday Health Dog & Cat Powder Formula, 4.2-oz bottle - Chewy.com

this morning Pancake ate his usual wet food alright, and also I picked up the Soulistic variety pack at the store today. Tried one tonight and pancake ate it all also with some persuasion :) I will keep my fingers crossed.
 

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Do you free feed dry? Dry left out all the time makes it harder to transition to wet.
For wet have a few brands going and don't feed two in a row but mix it up. Dry food has artificial flavoring to make it attractive to cats.
 
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Szewan

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No I never did free feeding of dry food with him since I adopted him last Sept. His foster did it with him and 2 of her other cats. I have used an auto auto feeder with timed food release, since I work full time away from home - at least used to before we all worked from home since March. And since I am always at home now self quarantining, I have increased his wet food intake and reduced his dry food, since wet food is more beneficial for managing his weight.

Do you free feed dry? Dry left out all the time makes it harder to transition to wet.
For wet have a few brands going and don't feed two in a row but mix it up. Dry food has artificial flavoring to make it attractive to cats.
 

di and bob

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Some cats just prefer dry. Cats have survived for generations on dry food, and the foods available now are much better in their quality and ingredients. I myself would keep trying many of the wet foods, rotating them so he doesn't get bored. I feed dry weight management Science Diet, my cats love it. They get a little wet food three times a day, snack size, mostly Sheba cuts, they won't touch pate. You wouldn't want to be forced to eat something you don't like, parents often do this to their children, and the children still dislike it when they grow up. Find a good quality food the cat prefers and feed it, everyone will be happier!
 
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Szewan

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oh yes and we all well know cats cannot be forced to do anything anyways, don’t we 🤪

I think I will be less concerned about dry vs wet if he is not overweight. He was close to 20 pounds when I adopted him in Sep and he’s just a ginger DSH (not like Maine Coone)! He’s about 7 years old now, and obesity affects older cats the same way as humans. He’s ok health wise now but I am trying to be proactive and preventive here. I am controlling his daily calories intake now as per the vet’s recommendation.

I am feeding him a small amount of weight management kibbles as well although I know even they are wm, they’ve more carbs than wet food, which is not the best for his weight. But he’s used to dry so I am trying to strike a balance with what he is used to, while having him to try something that he’s not used to but probably better for him. Also I think dry gives him some fiber that he needs? Thankfully I found the type of wet he seems to like, and I am sticking to it for now.


Some cats just prefer dry. Cats have survived for generations on dry food, and the foods available now are much better in their quality and ingredients. I myself would keep trying many of the wet foods, rotating them so he doesn't get bored. I feed dry weight management Science Diet, my cats love it. They get a little wet food three times a day, snack size, mostly Sheba cuts, they won't touch pate. You wouldn't want to be forced to eat something you don't like, parents often do this to their children, and the children still dislike it when they grow up. Find a good quality food the cat prefers and feed it, everyone will be happier!
 
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